Afghanistan: Provincial Reconstruction Team

The Earl of Sandwich: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How the United Kingdom Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Helmand provides security for non-government organisations in rural areas; and in what ways the PRT makes contact with the local population apart from by routine foot patrols.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: UK forces in Helmand aim to improve the local security situation such that other government departments, NGOs and other organisations can carry out work on governance, development and reconstruction.
	Representatives of the Provincial Reconstruction Team meet regularly with Government of Afghanistan personnel and other local nationals in a range of locations at the regional, provincial and district levels. International Security Assistance Forces make contact with local Afghans through routine patrolling; mentoring of Afghan national security forces; attendance at shuras where applicable; and meetings with Government of Afghanistan representatives at regional, provincial and district levels.

Children: Council of Europe Convention

Lord Hylton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Why they have not yet signed the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children Against Sexual Abuse and Exploitation; and by when they expect to be able to ratify this convention.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The UK was not in a position to sign the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Abuse and Exploitation at the Conference of European Ministers of Justice in Lanzarote. Before we sign any convention we must be satisfied that we will be in a position to implement the obligations contained in the convention. We are in the process of formally confirming with relevant departments and the devolved administrations that we are in position to sign and hope to be able to do so shortly.

Children: Poverty

Lord Ouseley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many families, and how many children, are currently living in poverty, as defined by the Government.

Lord Adonis: In 2005-06, there were 2.8 million children in poverty in the UK. This is a reduction from 3.4 million in 1998-99. There were 1.5 million families in poverty, where families are taken to mean households containing children. We have used the definition of a household in poverty as being one with an income less than 60 per cent of the median on a before-housing-costs basis.

China: North Korean Repatriation

Lord Alton of Liverpool: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will make representations to the Government of China about the case of Yoo Sang-joon, a North Korean human rights activist, who faces repatriation from China to North Korea.

Lord Malloch-Brown: We are aware that Yoo Sang-joon is facing a criminal trial in Inner Mongolia for actions which appear to have been motivated by humanitarian concerns. Mr Yoo is a naturalised South Korean and we understand that his nationality is recognised by the Chinese authorities. South Korea has dealt with around 70 cases of naturalised North Koreans who have been arrested for assisting others to defect for humanitarian reasons. These have either been given prison sentences in China or returned to South Korea. None have been returned to North Korea.
	Mr Yoo has received South Korean consular visits and a South Korean consul planned to attend his trial on Monday 26 November. We will continue to monitor this case and will consider raising it with the Chinese authorities in the light of developments.

Crime: Fuel Laundering

Lord Laird: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many fuel-laundering plants have been closed down in County Armagh each year since 2000.

Lord Davies of Oldham: Information of enforcement activity at a local level cannot be disclosed as this would provide information of value to those seeking to circumvent HM Revenue and Customs' controls, thereby prejudicing the prevention and detection of crime. The numbers of fuel laundering plants that have been disrupted in Northern Ireland in each year since 2000 are listed in the annual reports. Copies of the annual reports are available in the Library of the House.
	
		
			 Year Number of Laundering Plants 
			 2000-01 17 
			 2001-02 8 
			 2002-03 21 
			 2003-04 13 
			 2004-05 18 
			 2005-06 16 
			 2006-07 Data will be available in the 2007 HMRC Autumn Performance Report

Defence: RAF Menwith Hill

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Answer by Baroness Taylor of Bolton on 22 November (Official Report, cols. 924-6), whether the proposed United States missile defence bases in Poland and the Czech Republic as currently planned could function without RAF Menwith Hill.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The overall effectiveness of the US ballistic missile defence system is dependent on the co-ordinated interoperability of all the elements in the proposed architecture. The proposed ballistic missile defence assets in Poland and the Czech Republic could function, albeit at a lower level of effectiveness, without the ballistic missile early warning data routed through RAF Menwith Hill.

Disabled People: Employment

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many additional people who are registered disabled have been able to find workplace employment in the past year; and how this breaks down by gender.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: Local authorities are required to keep registers of people with a severe disability living in their area. However there is no central register. Information about movement into work for registered disabled people is therefore not available.
	Estimates for the number of disabled people who move from being out of work in one quarter to being in work in the next are available from the Labour Force Survey. This is based on a definition of disability consistent with the Disability Discrimination Act. These estimates cannot be directly converted into estimates for the year because people may move into and out of work more than once during a quarter.
	In 2006, it is estimated that on average 65,700 disabled people moved into employment from one quarter to another. This comprised 30,200 males and 35,500 females.

Employment: Allowances

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What are the employment and support allowance rates for (a) those in the support group; (b) the work related group; and (c) youth groups, who would have claimed incapacity benefit under incapacity in youth rules.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: No final decisions have yet been made on the exact rates for the new employment and support allowance.

Employment: Allowances

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What provisions they will make to compensate or provide backdated payments following the period of reduced rate of benefit for those being assessed for a move on to employment and support allowance.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: The assessment phase rate will not be applied to existing incapacity benefits customers when they are migrated to employment and support allowance. We have committed that existing customers will have their benefit level protected in cash terms.

EU: Reform Treaty

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will ensure that a full official consolidated text of the European Union reform treaty signed in Lisbon showing all changes to previous treaties in readable form is made available before the ratification process begins in Parliament.

Baroness Ashton of Upholland: I apologise to the noble Lord for the delay in answering this Question. The House of Lords European Union Select Committee has proposed to conduct its assessment of the impact of the reform treaty on the basis of the changes it makes to the treaties which are currently in force. As the committee has requested, we will provide a comparison of the reform treaty with the existing treaties and a consolidated text of the treaties as amended by the reform treaty.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Public Counter

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How many people visit the public counter service of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Legalisation Office.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The monthly average figure for visitors to the Legalisation Office, from January to October this year was 5,876.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Public Counter

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	To where they are proposing to move the public counter service of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Legalisation Office.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The public counter of the Legalisation Office will be moving to new premises in central Milton Keynes, from where it will be able to deliver a faster, more efficient service. Improvements will include a 48- hour turnaround on the postal service, as opposed to the current 10 to 15 working days. This will obviate the need for most of our customers to attend the office in person.

Government: Dual Ministerial Roles

Lord Tebbit: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	In what proportion Des Browne MP has divided his time as Secretary of State for Defence and as Secretary of State for Scotland.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: It is not possible accurately to determine the proportion of time my right honourable friend has devoted to his duties as the Secretary of State for Defence and Secretary of State for Scotland respectively. The Defence Secretary has written to you to explain the situation.

Immigration: IND and BIA

Lord Marlesford: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether there are any people employed in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate of the Home Office or the Border and Immigration Agency who are not entitled to work in the United Kingdom.

Lord West of Spithead: I am advised that the Border and Immigration Agency does not employ anyone who is not entitled to work in the UK or who is not permanently resident in the UK.

Iraq: Extradition

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will take action to secure the extradition from Iraq of Mohammed Ali for his alleged involvement in the murder of Banaz Mahmod.

Lord West of Spithead: As a matter of longstanding policy and practice the UK will neither confirm nor deny the existence of an extradition request made or received by this country ahead of arrest pursuant to the extradition request.

Israel and Lebanon: Cluster Munitions

Lord Hylton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether Israel has provided to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon the co-ordinates of all cluster munitions fired into Lebanon in 2006; whether the remaining unexploded cluster weapons in South Lebanon will be cleared by the target date of 31 December; and, if not, by when they expect clearance to be completed.

Lord Malloch-Brown: In October 2007, the UN Secretary-General reported that Israel has not provided the details of any of its cluster munition strikes to the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, or to any other part of the UN. The UK continues to call on Israel to provide all necessary information to assist the UN in the rapid clearance of cluster munitions in South Lebanon.
	The Mine Action Co-ordination Centre—South Lebanon (MACC-SL) set a target to clear all cluster munitions from the 2006 conflict by the end of 2007. However, this has not proved possible, largely because more cluster munition strike locations have been found as clearance efforts continue. MACC-SL's objective is now that by the end of 2007 the explosive remnants of the 2006 conflict do not directly impact the lives of those living in the affected areas. They expect that they will have cleared 70 to 75 per cent of the contaminated areas by the end of 2007. They predict that they will clear remaining areas of contaminated land by the end of 2008.
	The UK has been strongly supportive of efforts to clear cluster munitions in South Lebanon. The Government have pledged more than £3.7 million for the clearance of unexploded ordnance in Lebanon, including cluster munitions, since last year's conflict.

Licensing: Alcohol Consumption

Lord Maginnis of Drumglass: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What effect their November 2005 extended drinking hours legislation has had on reducing the incidence of (a) binge drinking; (b) underage consumption of alcohol; and (c) road traffic accidents involving drunk drivers.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The latest statistics suggest the number of adults drinking more than double the recommended limits has decreased among men and remained stable amongst women. However, these figures cover 2005 and largely relate to the period before the 2003 Act came into effect. Recent statistics on underage consumption suggest that fewer young people aged 11 to 15 are drinking alcohol, but those who are drinking are consuming more alcohol more often. There is no evidence that these changes are due to the 2003 Act, particularly as this trend predates the introduction of the new legislation and the majority of alcohol drunk by children is given to them by family and friends and drunk at home rather than purchased by them in licensed premises. We have no evidence linking the 2003 Act with incidences of road traffic accidents involving drivers over the legal alcohol limit. Provisional figures published in Road Casualties Great Britain 2006 suggest that the number of such incidents fell in the first full year following the implementation of the 2003 Act.

Local Government: Unitary Councils

Baroness Scott of Needham Market: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What assessment the Department for Children, Schools and Families has made of representations by the Association of Directors of Children's Services about the creation of new smaller unitary councils.

Lord Adonis: The Association of Directors of Children's Services responded to the Government's stakeholder consultation on proposals for unitary local authorities in June. The consultation document made clear that the Government would consider all comments and representations carefully before taking final decisions on the proposals. We intend to take those final decisions shortly.

Pakistan: Broadcasting

Lord Ahmed: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What representations they have made to the Government of Pakistan on the censorship of Geo TV by the United Arab Emirates authorities on news and views programmes; and whether they will make representations to the relevant authorities to allow broadcast of Urdu channels for the European and American diaspora communities.

Lord Malloch-Brown: Our High Commission in Islamabad is in contact with Geo TV, and the High Commissioner met one of its directors in Karachi recently. Although we have not made specific representations about Geo TV to the authorities in Pakistan or Dubai, we continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to lift all media restrictions.

Schools: Lack of Qualifications

Lord Ouseley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What were the costs of the schooling of all students who left education, aged 16 plus, at the end of the summer term in July 2007 without a single qualification.

Lord Adonis: For pupils who completed their GCSEs in 2007, their schools will have on average received £40,000 in real terms revenue funding per pupil over the 11 years of their schooling from the age of five to 15.
	Of those pupils, approximately 5,800 failed to achieve any passes at all, therefore the estimate of the costs of educating those who finished compulsory schooling with no qualifications is approximately £234 million in real terms over the 11 years.

Somalia

Lord Hylton: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will make representations to the Governments of those countries with mainly Muslim populations to take steps to relieve the growing humanitarian problems in Somalia.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The Government regularly engage with all interested countries, including countries with mainly Muslim populations, regarding Somalia. Representations to predominantly Muslim states are made both bilaterally and through the League of Arab States, which is a member of the International Contact Group on Somalia. Further representations are made through the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and at the UN. UN agencies are the primary provider of humanitarian assistance in Somalia.
	The United Kingdom has committed £8.6 million in humanitarian assistance to Somalia, so far, in 2007.

Somalia

Baroness Northover: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What representations they are making to the Government of Somalia to ensure that they fulfil their responsibility to protect civilians and allow humanitarian access.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The Government make representations to the Government of Somalia regularly, together with international partners, through the statements and communiques of the International Contact Group on Somalia, the EU Presidency, EU Special Envoy, the UN Secretary-General and the UN Security Council.
	The Government also make representations bilaterally. My noble friend the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Lord Triesman of Tottenham, did so when he met President Yusuf in February 2007. Aside from ministerial contacts, our High Commissioner in Nairobi regularly highlights humanitarian responsibilities to the Transitional Federal Government. Most recently, the High Commissioner met President Yusuf in Nairobi on 9 November, including humanitarian responsibilities in their discussion.

Terrorism: Repatriation of Suspects

Lord Judd: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Statement by the Lord President (Baroness Ashton of Upholland) on 14 November (Official Report, cols. 477-95), what action has been taken, by whom and when, effectively to monitor the treatment of the nine foreign terrorist suspects repatriated under existing agreements with recipient countries; what specific arrangements will be made in the light of experience with existing agreements in any new agreements; and whether they will in future regularly make available reports on such monitoring.

Lord Malloch-Brown: We have signed memoranda of understanding concerning the provision of assurances in respect of persons subject to deportation with Jordan, Libya and Lebanon. Arrangements allowing deportations with assurances (DWA) are also in place with Algeria on the basis of an exchange of letters, signed by the former Prime Minister the right honourable Tony Blair and Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika on 11 July 2006 and exchanges of diplomatic Notes Verbale.
	To date, eight Algerian terrorist suspects have been deported to Algeria under these arrangements. Individual assurances were also sought in each case, concerning their treatment on return and criminal status in Algeria. A ninth individual holding dual Algerian/French nationality was deported to France outside the framework of the DWA arrangements.
	There is no formal monitoring body in Algeria. Individuals deported from the UK under the DWA arrangements may remain in touch with our embassy in Algiers after their return and were invited to provide details of next of kin or an alternative contact point in Algeria. In turn they were provided with a contact point at the embassy and it was explained that they, or their nominated contact point, could maintain contact with the embassy after their return to Algeria. To date, two individuals have taken up this offer. Further to any deportation under these arrangements, UK officials also maintain close contact with the Algerian authorities.
	We are in discussion with other countries and will update the House if and when we reach agreement. We draw on experience to date in seeking to negotiate any new agreement.
	There are no plans to make reports on monitoring regularly available.

Treasure Act

Lord Kimball: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What will be the impact on (a) the voluntary recording of archaeological finds by the Portable Antiquities Scheme, and (b) the operation of the Treasure Act 1996 if the scheme's budget is reduced to the same extent that the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council's budget is being cut.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) is funded by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) and so any decisions on its future funding will be taken by the MLA.
	The PAS is of national importance and the MLA is committed to seeing it thrive and evolve. The MLA will continue to work with the British Museum and other stakeholders to build on the success the scheme has had in its goal of advancing archaeological knowledge—for finders, museums and, most importantly, the wider public.
	The MLA believes the scheme fits with the wider Renaissance in the Regions agenda and intends to maintain current levels of support for 2008-09, while considering options for future funding in the context of wider priorities for museum collections and public participation.

Uganda: Human Rights

Lord Alton of Liverpool: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What assessment they have made of the 7,500 complaints of torture and cruel or inhuman treatment documented by the Uganda Human Rights Commission; and when they last raised the issue of Uganda's record on torture and human rights abuses with President Yoweri Museveni.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The Uganda Human Rights Commission registered a total of 2,901 complaints about torture and cruel or inhuman treatment in Uganda between 1997 and 2006. In 2006 the commission experienced a decline in the number of complaints.
	We continue regularly to raise human rights issues with the Government of Uganda. The UK takes an active role in Kampala in the Partners for Democracy and Governance Group (PDG) and its sub-group the Human Rights Working Group. Both groups regularly raise concerns with both the Ugandan Government and civil society. Human rights issues were last raised through the PDG with the Foreign Minister of Uganda on 24 October 2007. I raised these issues with Foreign Minister Kutesa during his visit to the UK in July 2007.

Uzbekistan: Human Rights

Lord Judd: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they have made an assessment of the report by Human Rights Watch Nowhere to Turn, published in November, concerning torture and ill-treatment in Uzbekistan; if so, what is their response; and what action they are taking.

Lord Malloch-Brown: The Human Rights Watch (HRW) report, Nowhere to Turn, assesses Uzbekistan's record on torture, co-operation with the UN agencies and new legislation in preparation. It looks at the effectiveness of current legislation, the complaints mechanism and punishment for perpetrators, the criminal justice system and the actual behaviour of law enforcement and others. The report goes on to provide details of individual cases. These details tally with the reports that we receive in Tashkent from victims, their families and lawyers, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and human rights defenders. We therefore share HRW's assessment that despite some positive steps in criminal justice reform, which we welcome, there has been no significant change in the widespread use of torture. Fundamental reform to policies and practices is needed if torture is to be eradicated.
	The issue of torture continues to form part of our dialogue on human rights with the Uzbek authorities. During the EU-Uzbekistan Human Rights Dialogue in May 2007, the EU expressed its concern at persistent reports that torture continues to be widespread. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's 2006 annual human rights report also details our concerns. We stand ready to assist Uzbekistan to fulfil its obligations under the convention against torture. For example, our embassy in Tashkent funded the participation of an Uzbek human rights NGO at the UN committee against torture session on Uzbekistan. We will also continue to work with the Uzbek authorities towards improved respect for human rights in other areas, for example with the implementation of recent legislation on the abolition of the death penalty and the introduction of habeas corpus.